Nelson Enlisting Residents in Battle Against Big Oil
NELSON ENLISTING RESIDENTS IN BATTLE AGAINST BIG OIL
It feels a bit like the run-up to a big heavyweight fight. U.S. Senator Bill Nelson now is moving to mobilize thousands of Florida residents with an Internet petition drive as part of the high-stakes oil-drilling battle he's waging with the administration and Congress.
While Nelson, who was joined by Senator Mel Martinez, won protections last week against new drilling off Florida's coast in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, the Senate yesterday voted 52-44 to allow the oil companies to go ahead and start conducting tests in the area using seismic explosions.
As part of the effort to convince the president and Congress that such an environmentally unsafe inventory of oil reserves is unnecessary, and unwanted by the vast majority Floridians, Nelson has launched an Internet petition - Hands off Florida's coast - he hopes will produce an army of supporters.
Already, a coalition of lawmakers led by Nelson, along with business and civic groups, oppose drilling off Florida's shores for various reasons - such as, one spill from a rig, barge, freighter or pipeline could devastate Florida's $50-billion tourism industry, as well as harm its fishing industry.
Such an accident also could irreparably damage the state's unique marine environment. Further, drilling and exploration would encroach on expanded military training exercises in the Gulf. And in the end there isn't enough oil to justify any of the risks. By some estimates, the known oil there amounts to only about three-fourths of what the U.S. imports from Saudi Arabia in just one day.
"We've got to keep going head-to-head with the big oil companies," Nelson said today, prior to a scheduled visit Friday to Panama City, where he'll formally announce the petition drive at 2 p.m. Panama City is home to some of the state's most popular beaches.
A copy of the petition form is available at http://billnelson.senate.gov/contact/petition0605.cfm
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